Monday Mom Challenge: Declare a truce with money

Whether you have a lot or a little or somewhere in between, you’ve got to learn to manage your money. It’s a fact of life. Like it or not, you’ve gotta know how much you have, where it’s going – hopefully creating a little financial stability and planning for the future in the process.

While there likely are few of us who truly like money management and think it’s fun (though there are some that do!), we all have to deal with it. Whether it’s monthly bills, long-range planning, or just day-to-day budgeting, money is intricately intertwined with every aspect of our lives.

Get over the discomfort

If you are struggling over money issues – if you just don’t like dealing with it or are having true financial problems, it may seem easiest to just bury your head under the pillow and ignore it. But that rarely has a good result in the long run. At some point, you have to just take a big breath, sit down and figure it out. It’s not necessarily pleasant, but it is very necessary!

Money is not your enemy. It’s a tool, a means to an end, and most of us could use a few tweaks to our money management style. Getting over the discomfort – or just learning to manage it – is key to taking the next steps for a healthier financial future.

Bring in an expert

If you are struggling with money management, from big to little issues, it might be right to bring in an expert. Banks and financial services institutions have experts on staff just for the purpose of helping customers figure out money issues. Yes, they want to sell their organization’s services, but they have a lot of knowledge and expertise to offer, too.

Some public social service agencies also offer money management expertise, and community education programs offer classes. Libraries have books and the Internet has many, many resources (though vet the sites carefully). The point is, there are resources available to help you with simple to complex money issues.

An example for the kids

If for nothing else, get a handle on your relationship with money as an example for your kids. Teach them and show them effective money management for their futures. Head off money discomfort with your kids before it starts!